Roaring Jungle Tales: THUN'DA - Captain Comics2018-02-22T05:12:47Zhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/forum/topics/roaring-jungle-tales-thun-da-king-of-the-congo?feed=yes&xn_auth=noThun'da #5 cont.
"The Treasu…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-18:3370054:Comment:5559772018-02-18T05:17:57.780ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #5 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Treasure of Lobengula!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/HBueopN-*0b5W3OLGRS9zJcT0cI8CvKMwVh6ffay8RJWHDDvt7RI7QaHEgmi3VNg8vHCqVOLgzvzJcpmQXzA3p8RsaKgoToI/25.jpg" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/HBueopN-*0b5W3OLGRS9zJcT0cI8CvKMwVh6ffay8RJWHDDvt7RI7QaHEgmi3VNg8vHCqVOLgzvzJcpmQXzA3p8RsaKgoToI/25.jpg?width=500" width="500"></img></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>A Capetown man has found and authenticated a map showing the location of the lost treasure of Lobengula. He shares his discovery with his friend Bruce Lanvin. He means to cut him in, but Lanvin kills him and takes it…</p>
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #5 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Treasure of Lobengula!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/HBueopN-*0b5W3OLGRS9zJcT0cI8CvKMwVh6ffay8RJWHDDvt7RI7QaHEgmi3VNg8vHCqVOLgzvzJcpmQXzA3p8RsaKgoToI/25.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/HBueopN-*0b5W3OLGRS9zJcT0cI8CvKMwVh6ffay8RJWHDDvt7RI7QaHEgmi3VNg8vHCqVOLgzvzJcpmQXzA3p8RsaKgoToI/25.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>A Capetown man has found and authenticated a map showing the location of the lost treasure of Lobengula. He shares his discovery with his friend Bruce Lanvin. He means to cut him in, but Lanvin kills him and takes it instead.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Lanvin thinks Thun'da will stop him taking the treasure, so he takes Pha hostage. (There might be a flaw in his thinking there.) As he travels with her there is a small earthquake. Later they are captured by Bwakka raiders.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da has been trailing Lanvin and Pha. He reads the signs of what happened, and knows it was the Bwaaka who seized them by an arrow. He heads for the Bwaaka village.</p>
<p></p>
<p>After watching all day he kills the night guards and escapes from the village with a figure bound in a blanket. But this turns out to be Lanvin. He returns to the village for Pha and intervenes when the Bwaaka bring her out to torture her. He fights the Bwaaka until they beg for mercy and accept his demands they stop raiding.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Lanvin prepares a bamboo cage and places automatic snares to catch Thun'da and Pha and deposit them in it. The trap works. He reaches the treasure of Lobengula. As he's gloating over it another earthquake causes the cave it's in to collapse. The earthquake frees Thun'da and Pha, and they find Lanvin's body.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>It surprises me that Thun'da can't break the bamboo bars of the cage. And he has his knife! Couldn't he cut his way free?</p>
<p></p>
<p>The whole trap is a miracle of construction. The ropes are designed to part under Thun'da's and Pha's weights and drop them into the cage, and it must have an automatically closing and locking roof. The script speaks of cages, but the art shows only one.</p>
<p></p>
<p>As the story is constructed Lanvin appears to construct the trap while Thun'da is fighting the Bwaaka. This is a case of double time, however, as Thun'da and Pha don't reach it until the next day. I always find it implausible when automatic snares catch two people at the same time. How could the trapper know just where each person would step?</p>
<p></p>
<p>The journey to the treasure takes days, and Lanvin has no partners or bearers. It's hard to believe Thun'da couldn't have rescued Pha earlier. He isn't around when the Bwaaka capture her and Lanvin. Was he eating breakfast? Waiting ahead on the trail to ambush him? When Thun'da takes Lanvin from the village he's thoroughly bound. Presumably he frees himself of his remaining bonds while Thun'da is rescuing Pha.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Lobengula was a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobengula" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">historical person</a>. His treasure was one of the troves Thun'da and Pha took Farris to in #4.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p> Thun'da #5 cont.
"Lord of th…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-18:3370054:Comment:5560402018-02-18T05:17:37.214ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #5 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"Lord of the Little People!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/O8x7g9p6sUsVmGHsX5mwskmzm*ZFWYobj2O6HvTPQ8HfUji1IQQKYB0Ii8yKa-iXamJUnZW2mYxxbHauQOADzSXTPjDtXHny/10.jpg" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/O8x7g9p6sUsVmGHsX5mwskmzm*ZFWYobj2O6HvTPQ8HfUji1IQQKYB0Ii8yKa-iXamJUnZW2mYxxbHauQOADzSXTPjDtXHny/10.jpg?width=500" width="500"></img></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Elwin White has stolen nuclear secrets and is a passenger on a plane crossing the Congo. One of the plane's engines catches fire, and it crashes in the jungle. White is the only survivor. A group of pygmy warriors hail him…</p>
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #5 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"Lord of the Little People!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/O8x7g9p6sUsVmGHsX5mwskmzm*ZFWYobj2O6HvTPQ8HfUji1IQQKYB0Ii8yKa-iXamJUnZW2mYxxbHauQOADzSXTPjDtXHny/10.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/O8x7g9p6sUsVmGHsX5mwskmzm*ZFWYobj2O6HvTPQ8HfUji1IQQKYB0Ii8yKa-iXamJUnZW2mYxxbHauQOADzSXTPjDtXHny/10.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Elwin White has stolen nuclear secrets and is a passenger on a plane crossing the Congo. One of the plane's engines catches fire, and it crashes in the jungle. White is the only survivor. A group of pygmy warriors hail him as the god Muungu because he has come down from the sky in a ball of fire. White slips into insanity and embraces this identity.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The District Commissioner asks Thun'da to find White and recover the formula he stole. Thun'da has heard talk about a white Muungu and guesses he might be White. He sets off for the pygmies' country.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da is attacked by White's followers. He fights them and is knocked out. White has him bound to saplings which have been bent over and tied to the ground. He means to cut the ropes so the saplings will spring up and tear him apart.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da tells the pygmies he, not White, is the true Muungu. He calls upon them to listen as he summons down thunder from the skies. There is an enormous explosion in the distance. The pygmies are convinced. They release him and ask his forgiveness.</p>
<p></p>
<p>White flees. Thun'da pursues him. His thoughts reveal he arranged for a cache of gunpowder to be set off by a timer in case he got into trouble. He saves White from a crocodile, but has to fight it because White kicks him into the river. White is killed by a python.</p>
<p></p>
<p>A week later Thun'da presents the microfilm to the Commissioner. He explains White had abandoned Western dress expect for his shoes, so he guessed the microfilm was hidden in them.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>The fourth story in #1 represented Thun'da as having forgotten what atom bombs and Russians are. Apparently he's recovered, as in this story he has modern knowledge of atomic power, microfilm and timed explosions. Also note the snow-goggles last issue and his understanding of the contraction of metals last story.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The District Commissioner's office is in Kenya. He's also called the Police Commissioner. Presumably he's the boss of the police Thun'da met in #3. (The ones from #2 could be his as well.) He has a map on his wall that includes <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_East_Africa" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Italian East Africa</a>. It ceased to exist in 1941, so that must be an old map.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Wikipedia tells me Kenya is also the name of a commune in Lubumbashi (then Elizabethville) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (then the Belgian Congo). But the Commissioner's map shows the colony of Kenya. Possibly Fox thought of Thun'da's Congo as an ungoverned region. </p>
<p></p>
<p>The Commissioner's secretary is a modern black woman. She admires Thun'da's physique as he talks to her boss.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p> Thun'da, King of the Congo #5…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-18:3370054:Comment:5561392018-02-18T05:00:41.991ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da, King of the Congo</em> #5</p>
<p></p>
<p>This issue's cover story, "The Flying Devils!", is a nice fantastic tale. The other two Thun'da stories have ordinary jungle plots.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Flying Devils!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/WGL85KiGhGi7BN84tkw0qGz2f64UKGSyTErJXsu*ntF7YcfVOkFbeSh-yUpiMkviOpzDPrjbywuX-v5aK6L-fVDeJM6SvLei/1.jpg" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/WGL85KiGhGi7BN84tkw0qGz2f64UKGSyTErJXsu*ntF7YcfVOkFbeSh-yUpiMkviOpzDPrjbywuX-v5aK6L-fVDeJM6SvLei/1.jpg?width=500" width="500"></img></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Women who ride giant bird mounts and use giant and smaller birds…</p>
<p><em>Thun'da, King of the Congo</em> #5</p>
<p></p>
<p>This issue's cover story, "The Flying Devils!", is a nice fantastic tale. The other two Thun'da stories have ordinary jungle plots.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Flying Devils!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/WGL85KiGhGi7BN84tkw0qGz2f64UKGSyTErJXsu*ntF7YcfVOkFbeSh-yUpiMkviOpzDPrjbywuX-v5aK6L-fVDeJM6SvLei/1.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/WGL85KiGhGi7BN84tkw0qGz2f64UKGSyTErJXsu*ntF7YcfVOkFbeSh-yUpiMkviOpzDPrjbywuX-v5aK6L-fVDeJM6SvLei/1.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Women who ride giant bird mounts and use giant and smaller birds as troops raid the jungle for human captives so they can offer them as sacrifices to "the Great Winged One". After three weeks of raids the Mambuti and Wahili light fires to signal Thun'da they need his help. </p>
<p></p>
<p>The bird-women attack again as the tribes' leaders are explaining things. Thun'da shows the tribesmen it's possible to fight back. The attackers are named Tanyana and Evala. Thun'da unseats Tanyana and kills her mount, but she escapes with the help of another of the giant birds. The women and their birds retreat.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da sees they have headed towards the cliffs that separate the Congo from the Dawn World. He guesses they live somewhere on the great mountain, and sets off after them. The journey takes days. High in the mountains a flock of the smaller birds attacks him. He fights against it, but it is too much for him and he is overcome. Tanyana and Evala call off the birds and take him prisoner.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The Bird People conduct their ceremonies on an open-air platform. Tanyana shows Thun'da a sword set in a stone. She tells him if he can draw it he will not be sacrificed to the Great Winged One. Thun'da cannot shift it. Two medium-sized birds lift him and deposit him on the flat crag where the sacrifices are placed.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The Great Winged One appears. It proves to be an enormous bird, "the fabled <em>Roc</em>". As it lifts Thun'da to eat him he strikes at its face with his knife. When he strikes the bird's eyes it screams, drops him and flees. Evala and her mount catch him. She says by defeating the Great Winged One he has earned his freedom.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da's hands are bound again. Tanyana insists Thun'da die anyway as he didn't kill the GWO. Evala refuses to give way. The two women fight. While everyone is watching Thun'da cuts his bonds on the sword in the stone.</p>
<p></p>
<p>It is now late, and Thun'da guesses the evening cold will have caused the steel of the sword to contract. He succeeds in drawing it from the stone. The Bird People pay him homage. Evala commences paying homage too. Tanyana attempts to kill her. Thun'da saves her, but Tanyana directs the Bird People to attack them.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da swings Evala and himself to safety on a handy rope dangling from heaven knows what. The GWO returns and carries Tanyana off. Evala says it blames Tanyana, its priestess, for its blindness, and will kill Tanyana and itself. She says her people will be friends with the jungle folk henceforth.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>Given that Thun'da isn't summoned until three weeks after the raids start some number of captives must have been sacrificed to the GWO. It's not clear if any Bird People other than Tanyana and Evala took part in the raids. In the art Tanyana appears to conduct the first raid solo. Evala is Tanyana's co-ruler, so she shares responsibility for the deaths.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Tanyana and the bird-women's use of bird mounts reminded me of Zaladane's and her followers' use of pterodactyls in Ka-Zar's feature in <em>Astonishing Tales</em>. Perhaps this issue was the Marvel creators' inspiration: they might have gone through old jungle comics for ideas.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da's blade is called the "knife of Kwa Kung" in all three of this issue's stories.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The bit about the cold contracting the steel of the sword is reminiscent of Fox's work for Julie Schwartz.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p> Thun'da #4 cont.
"The Devil…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-17:3370054:Comment:5559732018-02-17T16:39:56.775ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #4 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Devil Drug!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/M2LSJRlhluNTMWvgXbY6yuAX460*6tuIKn*4gKKNF3yPr-T8aLe4V5SYJ*LxUAKvuRxG*lp0gTZQWfxxFhEirr5DWkcfvgM0/27.jpg" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/M2LSJRlhluNTMWvgXbY6yuAX460*6tuIKn*4gKKNF3yPr-T8aLe4V5SYJ*LxUAKvuRxG*lp0gTZQWfxxFhEirr5DWkcfvgM0/27.jpg?width=500" width="500"></img></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>A white man named John Farris kills a witch doctor to obtain a drug that can rob a man of free will. One administers the drug by breathing it in the target's face. He uses the drug to obtain the ivory of the Membuti tribe, and sets…</p>
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #4 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Devil Drug!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/M2LSJRlhluNTMWvgXbY6yuAX460*6tuIKn*4gKKNF3yPr-T8aLe4V5SYJ*LxUAKvuRxG*lp0gTZQWfxxFhEirr5DWkcfvgM0/27.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/M2LSJRlhluNTMWvgXbY6yuAX460*6tuIKn*4gKKNF3yPr-T8aLe4V5SYJ*LxUAKvuRxG*lp0gTZQWfxxFhEirr5DWkcfvgM0/27.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>A white man named John Farris kills a witch doctor to obtain a drug that can rob a man of free will. One administers the drug by breathing it in the target's face. He uses the drug to obtain the ivory of the Membuti tribe, and sets out for Kenya with bearers.</p>
<p></p>
<p>On the way he comes upon Thun'da and Pha. He makes them his slaves, and orders them to tell him about the secret treasures of the jungle. They lead him to fantastic treasure-hoards. He makes maps of the locations and heads for the coast with Pha and a bag of diamonds. Thun'da he leaves in the jungle.</p>
<p></p>
<p>When he reaches the coast he dresses up and buys fancy clothing for Pha. Back in the jungle Thun'da is attacked by a panther. He instinctively defends himself, and by his exertion sweats out the drug.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da tracks Farris and Pha to the coast. By the time he arrives their ship is leaving. He swims to the ship, slips aboard, murders Farris off-panel, and leaves with Pha and the diamonds. The maps are destroyed.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>I thought this story's premise a strong one. It doesn't do as much with it as it might have, but there isn't room: it's only six pages.(1)</p>
<p></p>
<p>Farris obviously means to make Pha his sex slave. He has a line where he says she'll make a fine wife when he tames her. The resolution, with its off-panel murder by the hero, isn't something one sees in a comic every day.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The idea seems to be Farris's death releases Pha from her trance. There's no explanation of why the drug doesn't affect its administrator. It's not clear how many of the Membuti he enslaves. We only see him subduing one, who might be their leader.</p>
<p></p>
<p>When Farris orders Thun'da and Pha to tell him about the treasures of the jungle they name the emerald mines of the pharaohs, the lost gold mines of King Solomon, the hidden hoards of Lobengula, the golden wealth of Carthage, and the jewels of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Zimbabwe" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Zimbabwe</a>.(1) The first hoard they take him to is the fortune of Sheba.</p>
<p></p>
<p>(1) Counting the Cave Girl story, placed third, the page breakdown is 8/7/7/6.</p>
<p>(2) Spelt "Zambabwe" and "Zambebwe". Today's Zimbabwe was Rhodesia when the story appeared.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p> Thun'da #4 cont.
"The Women…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-17:3370054:Comment:5559032018-02-17T16:39:35.175ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #4 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Women Warriors!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/4y8Nho4q8UhCobPOiHsbFkTWOef4pVHlivsKZ95iVWsGlVZl3K751y719o9ZzVXD5phiTKTchP5-*h6rfcjhEuz3Frlu34eb/11.jpg" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/4y8Nho4q8UhCobPOiHsbFkTWOef4pVHlivsKZ95iVWsGlVZl3K751y719o9ZzVXD5phiTKTchP5-*h6rfcjhEuz3Frlu34eb/11.jpg?width=500" width="500"></img></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>An entrance through a waterfall leads to a "great cave world" inhabited by a race of Amazons. An officer reports to the queen, Irana, that they have found a man worthy to be her mate. This is Thun'da. She sends a force to capture…</p>
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #4 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Women Warriors!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/4y8Nho4q8UhCobPOiHsbFkTWOef4pVHlivsKZ95iVWsGlVZl3K751y719o9ZzVXD5phiTKTchP5-*h6rfcjhEuz3Frlu34eb/11.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/4y8Nho4q8UhCobPOiHsbFkTWOef4pVHlivsKZ95iVWsGlVZl3K751y719o9ZzVXD5phiTKTchP5-*h6rfcjhEuz3Frlu34eb/11.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>An entrance through a waterfall leads to a "great cave world" inhabited by a race of Amazons. An officer reports to the queen, Irana, that they have found a man worthy to be her mate. This is Thun'da. She sends a force to capture him.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da kills a panther that has attacked him and Pha. As he's rising the Amazons attack him. They capture him, and knock Pha down and leave her behind.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Irana tells Thun'da he can die by torture or fight her greatest warrior. If Thun'da wins he will go free, but if he loses he must marry her. Expecting to win, Thun'da accepts these terms.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Pha means to fight for her man. She follows the Amazons' tracks to their city and kills a soldier and takes her clothes and equipment.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The Amazon champion easily defeats Thun'da because his food has been drugged. Not realising this, he resigns himself to marrying Irana.</p>
<p></p>
<p>A group of Amazon priestesses in horned masks come to his chamber to dress him for the wedding. Their leader reveals herself to be Pha. (Apparently the others have departed.) She tells him his food was drugged, and she killed a priestess for her outfit.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da and Pha escape. Irana sends Amazon troops after them. Thun'da makes snow-goggles from a cedar branch, and he and Pha head for the mountain peaks. The glare of the snow renders the Amazons snow-blind, but Thun'da's and Pha's sight is protected by their goggles.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Irana vows to recapture Thun'da and make him hers.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>The Amazons' caverns are lighted by "great floating globes of radiant energy". So Fox was still writing.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Pha is ruthless in this one. It isn't explicitly stated that she finds the city by following the Amazons' tracks, but that seems to be what's depicted.</p>
<p></p>
<p>There's another script/art mismatch when Pha takes the soldier's outfit. Her thoughts refer to the Amazon's "silken trousers". In the art the soldiers wear miniskirts.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The ending sets the Amazons and Irana up to appear again. They returned in #6.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p> Thun'da, King of the Congo #4…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-17:3370054:Comment:5561332018-02-17T12:37:20.152ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da, King of the Congo</em> #4</p>
<p></p>
<p>This issue the Thun'da stories have good premises. The cover is tied to the first story, but the image has a generic character. That might be an indication the cover was done first and the story written around it.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>"When the Jungle Went Mad!"…</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p><em>Thun'da, King of the Congo</em> #4</p>
<p></p>
<p>This issue the Thun'da stories have good premises. The cover is tied to the first story, but the image has a generic character. That might be an indication the cover was done first and the story written around it.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>"When the Jungle Went Mad!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/4AqJ4FrmapU9JIq5c3LY-h2d5GAuf21WKwsKBqsr8kjuoOrYuV*jz4pHitPyovwtfmJtTz29HnqtvOlvU9tRjBgyYqMnP2-C/2.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/4AqJ4FrmapU9JIq5c3LY-h2d5GAuf21WKwsKBqsr8kjuoOrYuV*jz4pHitPyovwtfmJtTz29HnqtvOlvU9tRjBgyYqMnP2-C/2.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>A monkey drops a message in a Congo village saying the animals will kill if they're not paid in gold. The chief laughs at it, but the next day a leopard kills him. A note left on his body blames his non-payment. Other chiefs are also killed by animals. Soon payments of gold or diamonds are being made to them all over.</p>
<p></p>
<p>A woman has come up from Capetown seeking someone named Jan. A message is thrown to her warning her to stay out of Pooka's country. Elsewhere, Thun'da and Pha receive a similar message. Thun'da has heard about the messages and deaths, but says they will stay in the jungle.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Subsequently, Thun'da is attacked at intervals by a leopard, a gorilla, and an elephant. He kills the first two, and escapes the elephant. As he does, animals attack the Capetown's woman's safari. Thun'da hears her screams and kills the gorilla pursuing her.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da takes the woman with him as he trails the other animal attackers. After two days they reach an escarpment which the animals climb. The woman is keeping a secret from Thun'da. She pretends to be too afraid to continue, but during the night she slips away from their camp and climbs the escarpment.</p>
<p></p>
<p>At the top she finds her husband Jan Kenyon, "the greatest living trainer of animals in the world'. He has gone mad, and now calls himself Pooka-Namba. He calls her a spy from the world of humans and attempts to throw her into a snake pit.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da has trailed the woman, and intervenes to save her. Kenyon slips into the snake pit and is killed. Thun'da frees his animals.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>The animal crimes premise is a recurring one,(1) but I think this is the first time I've run into it in a jungle story. The imagery of animals running a shakedown racket gets the story off to a good start.</p>
<p></p>
<p>I guessed a human would prove to be behind things. I think it would've been more fun if the cause of the crime wave had proved to be something more fantastic.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The destruction of Mrs Kenyon's safari mostly happens off-panel. In p.5 panel 5 the lion in the background is killing one of her porters.(2) P.6 panel 5 Thun'da says her porters are "dead or fled southward". Panel 7 shows the attackers included a lion, another big cat, elephants and at least one more gorilla.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da's release of the animals at the end might not be a good idea. They've been trained to kill humans! He says they'll forget Kenyon.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Kenyon's training methods include use of "drugs and hypnotic influences". He's shown training a leopard with a whip and chair.</p>
<p></p>
<p>A caption identifies Thunda's hunting knife with the knife he took from Kwa Kung in #1.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The final panel shows Thun'da relaxing with Pha and a monkey. I expect we won't see Sabre again.</p>
<p></p>
<p>(1) Examples include the Space Ranger story from <em>Tales of the Unexpected</em> #45 and <em>Justice League of America</em> #131-#132. Feel free to note others.</p>
<p>(2) There's a dialogue/art mismatch p.5 panel 6: Mrs Kenyon says "the lion's" going to kill her, but it's a gorilla pursuing her.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p> Thun'da #3 cont.
"The Terror…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-16:3370054:Comment:5560242018-02-16T16:34:29.025ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #3 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Terror of the Witch Doctor!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/poj1KO1Vy7j3sosYoECmD7CDExAO0fkIMJxfz6ElkMMA*ky2FPcTVaBbKTRYxuPBOX6lMJSlTnwNDW0MEhINEhfmmr3w0lkK/18.jpg" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/poj1KO1Vy7j3sosYoECmD7CDExAO0fkIMJxfz6ElkMMA*ky2FPcTVaBbKTRYxuPBOX6lMJSlTnwNDW0MEhINEhfmmr3w0lkK/18.jpg?width=500" width="500"></img></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>A witch doctor named Mumf'ooka has acquired great prestige. He predicts a lion will kill a hunter named Kuviroo.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Days later a lion attacks Kuviroo. Thun'da kills the lion, but too late to save him. He…</p>
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #3 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Terror of the Witch Doctor!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/poj1KO1Vy7j3sosYoECmD7CDExAO0fkIMJxfz6ElkMMA*ky2FPcTVaBbKTRYxuPBOX6lMJSlTnwNDW0MEhINEhfmmr3w0lkK/18.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/poj1KO1Vy7j3sosYoECmD7CDExAO0fkIMJxfz6ElkMMA*ky2FPcTVaBbKTRYxuPBOX6lMJSlTnwNDW0MEhINEhfmmr3w0lkK/18.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>A witch doctor named Mumf'ooka has acquired great prestige. He predicts a lion will kill a hunter named Kuviroo.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Days later a lion attacks Kuviroo. Thun'da kills the lion, but too late to save him. He notices the lion has not recently fed.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Mumf'ooka means to make himself king. At his instigation the tribes begin to attack missions, trade caravans, boats and trading posts. Kenya police enter the jungle to arrest him.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Elsewhere, Thun'da finds an abandoned bamboo cage that smells of lion. He realises Mumf'ooka starved a lion and released it to kill Kuviroo.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da ropes Mumf'ooka and hangs him from a tree by his legs. He says he means to leave him hanging overnight to think over his ways. Mumf'ooka responds with a prophecy Thun'da will be choked to death by a vine.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da releases Mumf'ooka the next morning. He orders his followers to weave a vine around a rope and hang him. Thun'da hears the ornaments of his would-be killers in time to evade it. He overcomes them and ties them up.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da hears shots, and races towards the sound. He finds Mumf'ooka's followers about to attack the Kenya police. He intervenes, and scatters the attackers.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da tells the police that Mumf'ooka should be exposed before he is arrested. He takes the men he captured to Mumf'ooka's kraal and accuses him. Mumf'ooka denies it and orders his followers to kill him by prophesising his immediate death. Thun'da seizes Mumf'ooka and holds a knife to his head. He warns his followers to not come closer, and asks him what he sees in his own future now. Terrified, Mumf'ooka confesses. Thun'da hands him over to the police.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>This is a standard jungle adventure plot. The resolution is anticlimactic, as Mumf'ooka gives in so easily.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da avoids using lethal force for a change. There's no obvious reason why he first gives Mumf'ooka a chance to change his ways. When he fights the men about to attack the Kenya police he uses an elephant tusk club he carries.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p> Thun'da #3 cont.
"The Dragon…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-16:3370054:Comment:5560232018-02-16T16:33:49.578ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #3 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Dragon Devil!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/poj1KO1Vy7j4C6D6tc7lePux4OZoMrwqQA1JrwjTwVpaQa3ysdCjkHqaTCKtB4E05rwDegLt7UfLNclk*NCxYhGaqITSzcHW/10.jpg" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/poj1KO1Vy7j4C6D6tc7lePux4OZoMrwqQA1JrwjTwVpaQa3ysdCjkHqaTCKtB4E05rwDegLt7UfLNclk*NCxYhGaqITSzcHW/10.jpg?width=500" width="500"></img></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Fishmen driving crocodiles raid a native village for slaves. Thun'da hears the screams and fighting and intervenes. He drives off the fishmen, but as they flee they spot Pha and take her prisoner.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The fishmen's lair…</p>
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #3 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Dragon Devil!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/poj1KO1Vy7j4C6D6tc7lePux4OZoMrwqQA1JrwjTwVpaQa3ysdCjkHqaTCKtB4E05rwDegLt7UfLNclk*NCxYhGaqITSzcHW/10.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/poj1KO1Vy7j4C6D6tc7lePux4OZoMrwqQA1JrwjTwVpaQa3ysdCjkHqaTCKtB4E05rwDegLt7UfLNclk*NCxYhGaqITSzcHW/10.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Fishmen driving crocodiles raid a native village for slaves. Thun'da hears the screams and fighting and intervenes. He drives off the fishmen, but as they flee they spot Pha and take her prisoner.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The fishmen's lair is in deep water. Thun'da dives and finds a walled city, but at first can find no way in. Bubbles on the surface lead him to an entrance guarded by crocodiles. He kills them and finds an air-filled chamber past the entrance. He kills the fishmen posted there.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Pha has been brought before the fishmen's evil queen. She condemns her to be hung in a net and thrown to the dragon god.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The fishmen detect Thun'da's presence and flood the corridor he's traversing. The water washes Thun'da into the chamber of the dragon god, which is a carnivorous dinosaur.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Pha is dropped into the chamber. The pair struggle to evade the dinosaur's strikes. Thun'da strikes at it but can't hurt it due to its thick hide.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da throws his knife to cut the rope of the net Pha was in. It drops onto the dinosaur, and Thun'da further entangles it in it. While the beast is struggling with the net they scale the walls.</p>
<p></p>
<p>They race through the corridor Thun'da came in by before the fishmen can flood it again. Spotting the building's keystone arch, Thun'da strikes it with the hammer from a nearby gong. The building is very old, and this is enough to start it collapsing.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The pair escape as the building collapses. Back on the surface Thun'da declares the menace over forever.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>This story's imaginativeness and more interesting plotting elevate it above the average jungle tale. Thun'da meets setbacks, and shows more ingenuity than he has previously.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The fishmen were probably borrowed from Lovecraft. Their underwater city is the "ancient city of <em>Sharda!</em> Built before Egypt was - by people from a place called Atlantis!" So I figure Fox was still writing.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p> Thun'da, King of the Congo #3…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-16:3370054:Comment:5561222018-02-16T16:32:57.342ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da, King of the Congo</em> #3</p>
<p></p>
<p>I thought this issue showed a step-up in quality. The art has more zest, and the depictions of native Africans are more respectful. The second story, "The Dragon Devil!", is the most imaginative and entertainingly-plotted instalment so far. </p>
<p></p>
<p>The two other Thun'da stories both have appearances by Kenya police. Kenya doesn't overlap with the…</p>
<p><em>Thun'da, King of the Congo</em> #3</p>
<p></p>
<p>I thought this issue showed a step-up in quality. The art has more zest, and the depictions of native Africans are more respectful. The second story, "The Dragon Devil!", is the most imaginative and entertainingly-plotted instalment so far. </p>
<p></p>
<p>The two other Thun'da stories both have appearances by Kenya police. Kenya doesn't overlap with the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congo_Basin" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Congo Basin</a>.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The issue introduces a new costume for Pha. Thun'da carries a spear as well as a bow, and his outfit now includes a shoulder belt which he uses to affix his weapons. Sabre no longer hunts and fights with Thun'da, and only appears in one panel. </p>
<p></p>
<p>The main image and inset on the cover are both tied to "The Dragon Devil!"</p>
<p></p>
<p>I'll skip the Cave Girl stories from this point as Thun'da isn't in them.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>"The Axe of Death!"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/eo3VJHwdB2Rqdxp8yuY6anxet1v7g42fDfzJEulj9Cq*uBObzWzbOnb8pVEadYkasWO*RqMTI*5Vy6AWo4xNwh5-EDaEnSat/1.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/eo3VJHwdB2Rqdxp8yuY6anxet1v7g42fDfzJEulj9Cq*uBObzWzbOnb8pVEadYkasWO*RqMTI*5Vy6AWo4xNwh5-EDaEnSat/1.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da has been cornered by Basuli warriors in a ruined city. As he attempts to escape he slips and falls into a chamber where an ancient axe lies. He routs his attackers with the axe. Suddenly, he cries out his blood is on fire. He passes out, apparently dead.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The Basuli chief, also called Basuli, has remained. He declares the axe magic and takes it. But when he attempts to use it against a rhinoceros he too declares his blood on fire and collapses.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Three weeks later a Wazuti warrior finds the axe by his remains. He means to use it to fight a gorilla, but likewise calls out and collapses.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The story shifts back some weeks. Thun'da is found by a group of Kenya police seeking slave-traders. They realise he's been poisoned, and administer an antidote. Thun'da stays with them two days, then sets off to find the Axe of Death.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The story shifts forward again. The slave traders spy Pha and seize her. One of them also finds and picks up the axe.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Pha frees herself and KOs or kills the woman left to watch her. Needing a weapon, she picks up the axe. Thun'da has traced it to the caravan, and throws his knife to knock it out of her hand. She cries out before she realises it's him.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Pha's cries bring the slavers. Thun'da wraps his hand in thick hide and fights them with the axe. Then he and Pha escape.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da explains the axe has a retracting poison needle in the handle. When the section is pressed the needle poisons the holder.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da leads the police to the slavers, and they take the villains prisoner. Then he and Pha return to their idyllic life.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>The axe reminded me of Machiste's axe from <em>Warlord</em> #7, which really is cursed. The explanation of the deaths in the present story is a chestnut, but the mystery of the axe is a nice hook.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Pha is fiercer here than she's been previously. She frees herself, takes out her watcher, and was evidently willing to fight.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The slavers are depicted like the ones last issue, but this time they're Arabs.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The Kenya police are black, and use British locutions in their speech. (At the time Kenya was a British colony.) I like to see respectful depictions of black people in these kinds of stories.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Basuli died two hours after claiming the axe, and it lay by his body for three weeks. Thun'da was apparently revived not too long after he was poisoned, and stayed with the police two days. So apparently it took him a couple of weeks to trace Basuli's movements in the two hours he had it.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Sabre is seen with the relaxing Thun'da and Pha in the final panel. It seems they've also acquired a dog.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p> Thun'da #2 cont.
"Cave Girl"…tag:captaincomics.ning.com,2018-02-16:3370054:Comment:5557182018-02-16T10:04:09.487ZLuke Blanchardhttp://captaincomics.ning.com/profile/LukeBlanchard
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #2 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"Cave Girl": "The Ape God of Kor"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/UHGhXud1thmkD5*ncUPBHAhpfO2z-f*Ja-pDsAU9R7A71sHqp4C3ebVH1rV-3LaI*sp52rQ6dMYSL5T3LlXHalFaYQeZAkLw/26.jpg" target="_self"><img class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/UHGhXud1thmkD5*ncUPBHAhpfO2z-f*Ja-pDsAU9R7A71sHqp4C3ebVH1rV-3LaI*sp52rQ6dMYSL5T3LlXHalFaYQeZAkLw/26.jpg?width=500" width="500"></img></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da and Pha have returned to the Lost Lands. A flock of thousands of birds of many different kinds attacks them. They spy Cave Girl at the edge of the clearing. Her dialogue reveals the birds are attempting to…</p>
<p><em>Thun'da</em> #2 cont.</p>
<p></p>
<p>"Cave Girl": "The Ape God of Kor"</p>
<p></p>
<p><a href="http://api.ning.com:80/files/UHGhXud1thmkD5*ncUPBHAhpfO2z-f*Ja-pDsAU9R7A71sHqp4C3ebVH1rV-3LaI*sp52rQ6dMYSL5T3LlXHalFaYQeZAkLw/26.jpg" target="_self"><img width="500" class="align-center" src="http://api.ning.com:80/files/UHGhXud1thmkD5*ncUPBHAhpfO2z-f*Ja-pDsAU9R7A71sHqp4C3ebVH1rV-3LaI*sp52rQ6dMYSL5T3LlXHalFaYQeZAkLw/26.jpg?width=500"/></a></p>
<p></p>
<p>Thun'da and Pha have returned to the Lost Lands. A flock of thousands of birds of many different kinds attacks them. They spy Cave Girl at the edge of the clearing. Her dialogue reveals the birds are attempting to protect her from them, as they already have from someone called Boorg. Thun'da disarms her and catches her as she briefly reels. This convinces her he means no harm, and she orders the birds to depart.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Boorg is the high priest and leader of the Apemen of Kor. He is watching, and orders his followers to attack them. Thun'da fights them, and Sabre arrives and joins in. But Sabre is netted, and Thun'da is overwhelmed.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The trio are taken to the ruined city of Kor, which the Apemen inhabit. Thun'da is imprisoned in a cell (again). Days later he's taken into an amphitheatre where he fights a sabretooth barehanded in front of a crowd and the Apemen's ape god idol. He is victorious, but doesn't take the opportunity to escape as the Apemen are holding Pha and Cave Girl.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Returning to his cell, Thun'da see Boorg molesting Pha. He attacks him, but the Apemen overcome him before he can kill him. Boorg says the next day he will face three sabretooths.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Pha is imprisoned with Cave Girl. A bird brings Cave Girl a dagger. They pick the lock with it and escape.</p>
<p></p>
<p>To make sure Thun'da will die Boorg sends him into the arena in chains. But all animals know and love Cave Girl. She orders them not to attack, and frees Thun'da from his chains with her dagger. Then Thun'da, Cave Girl and the sabretooths rout the Monkeymen. Thun'da spears Boorg, and Cave Girl topples the idol.</p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
<p>Cave Girl is a woman of the Lost Lands, here called the Dawn World. She lives in the caves of Klaa. She can talk to animals, and is particularly close to birds. My guess is her closeness to birds here was modelled after Rima's from <em>Green Mansions</em>. I've not seen it in later instalments.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The opening caption describes her as "lovely, strong, barbaric in her savagery", but she comes across as a gentle woman in the story. The captions indicate she takes part in the fight at the climax, but all we see is her toppling the idol.</p>
<p></p>
<p>In some panels it's easy to see the Monkeymen are inhuman, but in others it hard to tell. Boorg's depiction is odd, as he wears what seems to be outer-world clothing. His garment is mostly red with stripes and might be a pullover or a nightshirt. There's no explanation of this.</p>
<p></p>
<p>There's another typo - "girds" for "birds" - p.3 panel 1.</p>
<p></p>
<p>The GCD doesn't have script credits for the stories this issue, so I wondered if Fox was still the writer. When the Apemen take the trio to Kor we're told "In the days before the memory of man, ancient Kor was a thriving city. Here came the fighting men of Atlantis and Mu, Sumer and Ophir - nations so old they are only legends in the world today." That sure sounds like him.</p>
<p></p>
<p>Image from Comic Book Plus.</p>
<p></p>